Spokane Alternative
by Djalilis
Summary: Rose only manages to kill Elena in Spokane, with disastrous consequences. Rated T for violence. Dimitri and Rose POV.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello everyone. This is an alternative to what happened in Spokane.  
****Please note, i will not update until next week, because i have exams at the moment... That I should be revising for instead of writing for you guys! I do it because I care. And I love procrastination.**

- Frostbite -

_Snarling with rage, she tried to grab me. I had never trained with a sword, but I had been taught to fight with any makeshift weapon I could find. I used the sword to keep distance between us, my motions clumsy but effective for the time being. _

_White fangs flashed in her mouth. "I am going to make you—" _

_"Suffer, pay, regret I was ever born?" I suggested. _

_I remembered fighting with my mom, how I'd been on the defensive the whole time. That wouldn't work this time. I had to attack. Jabbing forward, I tried to land a blow on Elena. No luck. She anticipated my every move. _

_Suddenly, from behind her, Isaiah groaned as he started to come around. She glanced back, the smallest of motions that let me swipe the sword across her chest. It cut the fabric of her shirt and grazed the skin, but nothing more. Still, she flinched and looked down in panic. I think the glass going through Isaiah's heart was still fresh in her mind. _

_And that was what I really needed. _

_I mustered all my strength, drew back, and swung. _

_The sword's blade hit the side of her neck, hard and deep. She gave a horrible, sickening cry, a shriek that made my skin crawl. She tried to move toward me. I pulled back and hit again. Her hands clutched at her throat, and her knees gave way. I struck and struck, the sword digging deeper into her neck each time. Cutting off someone's head was harder than I'd thought it would be. The old, dull sword probably wasn't helping. _

_But finally, I gained enough sense to realize she wasn't moving. Her head lay there, detached from her body, her dead eyes looking up at me as though she couldn't believe what had happened. That made two of us. _

**Rose POV**

I stared down at her head and felt the sudden desire to laugh. It looked so ridiculous on the floor. Detached.

Then heard Mia screaming at me. Oh shit. Isaiah had recovered now, he was staggering to his feet as I moved around to face him. _'You should have killed him while you had the chance Rose,'_ I thought grimly to myself. Isaiah was an older, and much more powerful. And his rage was now directed at me for killing Elena, his accomplice.

I'd worry about myself in a minute though, I needed to get Mia out of here first. She was still in danger. _They come first._

"Mia get the hell out of here, find the others-" I yelled at her as I desperately tried to fend off the powerful blows Isaiah was now raining on me. He had fully recovered from my glass attack.

Mia threw me a desperate look, but realising she would be more useful if she found help, she scrambled out of the building, into the daylight. A small surge of relief coursed through me as my confused brain registered she was safe now as well.

I finally had time to focus on my defence.

Isaiah came at me from the side, and I parried sluggishly to avoid him. The look of rage on his face had changed to one of cold calculation. It didn't look good. I needed to kill him before he could scheme any longer.

Having been on the defensive for the match, I now forced my body to do what it had been trained for. I swallowed down my fear and allowed the rage and sorrow of Masons death to well up in me. I charged at him with my lips in a snarl.

But my body was betraying my will, two days with no water or food had taken its toll. Isaiah moved in a blur and the next thing I knew, the old blunt sword was on the ground and Isaiah was grinning coldly at me. I felt utterly spent, my adrenaline was not enough now for my weak state. No way in hell did that mean I was giving up though. If only I could reach the light…

I made a run for it, but he grabbed me first. This was the end. Gut wrenching fear clenched my insides as I started to scream. His hand covered my mouth before I could make a sound. I struggled against him but he pushed me onto the ground, completely immobilising me. He horrible breath was cool upon to my neck. I knew it was the end.

_"Goodbye Dimitri. I love you."_ I thought to myself. It felt good embracing the thought. There would be no consequences when I was dead.

I felt a sharp pain in the back of my head, and everything went black.

**Dimitri POV**

'_Hurry up, Jon.' _I thought to myself, clenching my teeth. I knew it wasn't his fault that the van could only reach 130km along this road, especially without us looking more suspicious than we already were. But still, the more time we spent on the road, the more likely someone would end up hurt, or – I stopped myself thinking it. I couldn't imagine Rose being dead. There was so much life in her, so much ahead of her. Guardians are not guaranteed to live until retirement, but life being taken away before you were eighteen?

I calmed my thoughts. I would be no help to anyone if I couldn't keep myself together. I closed my eyes and thought of my home, which calmed me slightly.

Another ten minutes passed, by which time I was in full guardian mode. I made eye contact with Jon, who pulled over by a side street about 100 metres away from the house Rose and the others were being held.

We got out of the van and let the others out. We started fanning casually across the street, all heading for the house.

Suddenly, I noticed a small blond girl running towards me. With a shock, I recognised Mia Rinaldi, one of the girls who had been captured along with Rose. Had they all escaped?

'Dimitiri! You have to help her!' shouted Mia weakly. All the guardians stopped and stared at her, stunned. She pointed towards the house and stopped to pant.

'Rose was fighting them –' Mia continued explaining her story, as I ran with a few of the Guardians to the house. I spotted Janine Hathaway, Rose's mother, with her guardian mask up, but worry showed in her eyes.

'_Rose was fighting them.' _She had been fighting the Strigoi. She hadn't fared well against Natalie well fed and strong. How could she manage weak against two Strigoi?

'О, боже,' I whispered to myself as we entered the house. There was a dead female Strigoi. Her head had been decapitated. There was also an ancient sword lying beside her. The house was eerily quiet. There was no movement.

I cought sight of a dead body, Mason. He had been Rose's friend. Then my companions and I checked out the rest of the house. There was nothing.

Cold fear clutched at my chest. Rose and the other Strigoi weren't here.

Rose... She couldn't be...

Dead?

**Oh No! What will happen next?**

**Reviews are greatly appreciated! I don't know if this is any good... Would you like me to keep going with it?**

**Suggestions are also appreciated!**

**x**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

**Hello everyone! Thank you so much for your lovely reviews: Jordan Anne Wood, the gentle, Rose-Dimitri-Foreva and TheBookShelf.**

**I forgot to do this last chapter, so I'll do it for two chapters now:**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Vampire Academy. Richelle Mead does. **

**Enjoy the chapter!**

**Rose POV**

I woke up back at the ski lodge. I was wearing a black dress, which was covering a very skimpy bikini. I frowned. Somehow this wasn't right. I couldn't be here, especially in these clothes. But why, whats wrong? Where is everyone?

Then I saw Adrian come around a corner and look at me with a worried expression on his face.

"Rose! Thank God you're asleep." He said, with a worried half-grin. He added, "Everyone is seriously worried about you. And what the hell happened to your head?" He added worriedly, gesturing at dried blood.

Dried blood?

And then it all came rushing back. Mason's death. My unsolved predicament. I had been confused by the spirit dream and hadn't been sure of reality. Well, I sure as hell knew now.

I felt ill. I was a captive of Isaiah, probably about to be killed... Or worse.

Don't think about it Rose.

What do I do though? Dimitri and the others couldn't find me. I didn't even know where I was.

"Oh, God, Adrian. They killed Mason. I managed to down one Strigoi, Elena, but the other got me." I exclaimed. Get it together Rose. Be strong for Lissa. If you were coming back as one of them… She needed more protection. God knows what would happen if I would still have the connection with her. You have to say... Goodbye.

"Adrian. You have to tell Lissa goodbye. And tell Dimitri I'm sorry." I choked out.

Adrian's eyes widened, he grabbed my shoulders and said firmly, "Rose, listen. We're not giving up on you. Come back to us. Do you know where you are?"

I shook my head despairingly and replied, "No, Adrian you don't understand. He hasn't killed me yet."

Adrian looked at me as if I was going crazy, and in a slightly panicked tone continued, "But wha-"

"Adrian." I said sharply. "Use your head." I refused to break down in front of this guy I'd barely met.

He let go of me, and stepped back, his fist across his mouth and horror showing in his eyes. None of the bold cockiness now.

I continued, ignoring the rising lump in my throat, "You have to make sure that Lissa is safe. Guarded. I hope that our connection will fade, but if it doesn't…" I shuddered as i though of what could happen.

"And Adrian. Try and remember me how I was." I felt that was important. I didn't want Adrian remembering me as a Strigoi.

Then I felt a sharp pain. I was starting to wake up.

Adrian gazed at me in horror, gaping.

"Adrian! Promise me you'll get protection for Lissa! Tell Dimitri not to-"

And then I woke up. Shit.

**Dimitri POV**

Vasilisa, Christian and I were listening to Ivashkov recount his last dream with Rose. He spoke in a deadpan voice, eyes on the floor.

When he was finished, Vasilisa looked stunned. Then she started shaking and crying. Christian stepped in and held her as she sobbed. He looked pretty shaken himself. He took her back to her room, where she could have some privacy.

_"Oh God Rose. I came too late. I'm so sorry."_ I thought to myself.

I couldn't feel… or think coherently yet. I felt too numb. Roza, one of them. She was so strong, so ferocious. And they had taken that away from her, from me. What could I do? _"There is nothing,"_ I thought bleakly. It was too late.

I looked at Ivashkov, and he finally looked up and said to me grimly, "We'll need to get extra protection. For Lissa."

I stared at him coldly. Rose had just been captured, most likely killed, and all he could think about was the Princesses safety? I needed to get out of here.

As I turned to leave, I said to him bluntly, "I'll take care of it."

He caught on to my anger, and called out to me as a headed out the door,

"Belikov? She asked me to say sorry to you. I'm sorry. And at the end, before she faded…" I turned back to him.

He frowned now, but continued, "She told you to not do _something_, but she went before she had time to finish. Do you know what she meant?" He looked at me in anguish.

I'd misunderstood the boy. He did care. At least he was still trying to figure this out, trying to help her. But he didn't fully understand the enormity of the situation. If Rose was… Strigoi… Then she needed to be released. She was telling me not to come after her, not to find her. She was scared about hurting me. These were her last acts as a free woman. I blinked back tears that had sprung to my eyes.

I could still read her like one of my novels. Just like she could read me. This was the woman I had loved. My soul mate. I was stupid to deny it, stupid to think that Tasha could distract me.

Besides, Ivashkov was right. If Rose was Strigoi, it was a very big possibility she might track down the Princess, something that I couldn't let happen. She would want to be taken out if it meant her safety.

_Oh Roza. If only I could have helped you._

Well, I could help her now.

I could free her from herself.

**Rose POV**

I woke up with a groan, to see Isaiah. His red eyes were looking impassively at me. We were in the back of a van; and from my quick glimpses, there were no weapons on hand. I refused to let that get me down, I hadn't given up all hope. No way was I dying without a fight.

"I can see what you're doing, little Blood Whore. There is no use trying to escape." Isaiah said to me coolly.

I glared at him, and he chuckled darkly. I blinked in surprise. Strigoi can laugh?

"You took down Elena. I put work into her, I trained her myself." He looked at me with a calculating expression, and said, "You took down one of us. You have raw talent, tinted by emotion, but still… It's there. You are also connected to the last living Dragomir…" With that, he pulled out Lissa's chotki.

My heart was beating so fast. It probably knew its beats were numbered.

"If you hurt Lissa, I swear, I'll kill you. Strigoi scum!" I yelled at him. I felt so weak. That was probably the most half-hearted yells of my life.

He raised an eyebrow at me and drawled, "You don't want to be saying that about your own kind, my dear."

He blurred towards me. He bit down, hard on my jugular.

I struggled. I screamed, flailed, yelled for help.

Worthless.

The endorphins were kicking in now, and I barely had enough strength to lift my arm. A tear escaped my lid.

And that was my last act as a sane woman.

**Review please! You have no idea how happy it makes me when i log on and see them. **

**Any suggestions would be welcome!**

**x**

**Please note: I do have exams soon, so I won't update as much as I would want. In a week, I swear, I'll update all the time!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey Guys. **

**I'm sorry its taken me so long to update. I had exams, and I finally have my freedom back, so I'll update way more often!**

**I realise some of you don't want to turn Rose into a Strigoi, but really, this was what my story was about. But hey, in the books, Dimitri turned Strigoi, and that provided Richelle Mead to come up with good plotlines for another 3 books. **

**And keep in mind that this is still about ****saving**** Rose, freeing her soul one way or another.**

**Keep reading, I promise it won't be too depressing ;)**

**Enjoy the chap! I made it extra long because I haven't updated for about a week (sorry again)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Vampire Academy. Only the plotline.**

**Dimitri POV**

I had packed the essentials: money, clothing. My stake. I had enough savings to be able to last for a long time while I was away.

All that remained now was the will to actually leave. My love or my career, they always clashed. At first, it was the problem of being with Rose, and worrying about guarding the princess when Rose came of age… Which one do I protect?

And then there was the age difference. The fact that I was her mentor, not her love.

But now? It was about hunting Rose down… and leaving the princess? She needed protection more than ever, now Rose was… I choked on the thought. I had a sudden flashback, when Rose was safe, and we were heading back from the mall in the van. I'd said this to her…

_"What would you want if you knew you were going to be converted into a Strigoi against your will? If you knew you would lose all sense of your old morals and understanding of what's right and wrong? If you knew you'd live the rest of your life—your immortal life—killing innocent people? What would you want?"_

I'd seen the thoughts racing through her, conflicts about growing up and wanting to be a good guardian. A good woman. She'd replied to me firmly,

_"If I became Strigoi...I'd want someone to kill me._"

And that is why I am leaving. She shouldn't live like this. I wiped away the tear that had escaped my eyelid, and steeled myself. I arranged my features so that they were blank and expressionless: clean of emotion. I needed to be free of emotion if this was ever going to happen, if I could ever free her, and let her rest in peace.

A loud knocking interrupted my reverie. I frowned. I wasn't expecting any visitors. Everyone was packing to leave the resort, what with the tragedy… I broke off my train of thought. No emotion.

It was this that was going to allow me to slip off the radar. I had already explained to Tasha that I couldn't be her guardian. She understood that Rose was my student, but nothing more than that. It was still reason enough to be doing this.

The knocking started again. I gritted my teeth, and opened my door, the slight clench of my jaw was the only indication that I was at unease. No-one would usually be able to tell. Rose was the only one who could have spotted it.

The door opened to reveal Vasilisa Dragomir. She looked up at me with feverish eyes and then eyed the bag of my belongings on my bed. Then looked back at me and said quite evenly,

"Dimitri, please listen to me. You can't leave."

I stared at her with a mixture of regret and a twinge of anger. Regret because if I had been doing my job with honour, I would not be running to hunt Rose, but staying and protecting this vulnerable girl. I felt anger because she was attempting to stop me from doing what I needed to do. She had to realise this wasn't her choice.

I opened my mouth to speak, when Mikhail Tanner stepped from around her. He eyed me with a mixture of understanding and pity. I remembered suddenly that his love Sonya Karp had willfully turned Strigoi, and he had attempted to the do the same thing that I was about to do. Except he couldn't find her. And it had also ruined his reputation.

I nodded to him. He then said to me,

"Belikov, you need to come with us. Relax, we just want to talk."

I regarded them both impassively. Mikhail looked determined, the princess looked anxious. I decided to hear them out, I could always escape later. Besides, I owed the Princess this much.

**RPOV**

Suddenly, I was awake.

The first thing I was able to clarify was that I was hungry. No surprises there. How long had it been since I'd eaten?

I started to picture food… but… it was strange. It was like… I didn't want it anymore. I was hungry for something else.

I sat up. Too fast, my motions are too fast… Whats wrong with me?! I whipped my hand to my face, and then I noticed the colour of my skin… Too pale… Even for me. Usually my skin is like the inside of an almond. Now its paper white. No colour at all.

A growing sense of horror built through me as a stood up. No-one was in the house. House? I had been in the inside of a truck… Where was I? And where the hell was Isaiah? Maybe I could escape from him…

It was light outside, and I pushed away the worrying thoughts. If I could just make it to the light… Yes!

NO… The light was burning me… As soon as I reached it, I couldn't see, it was so bright. I felt like I was burning alive. The worst pain I'd ever felt in my life…

And then it ended.

Someone had pulled me from the fire, saving me from the light. Isaiah. He laughed at me, and looked at me with his red eyes. Then he said,

"It would be a shame to lose you, so soon after Elena. Try not to kill yourself. I know it's hard." He laughed again.

And then it all clicked. The paleness. The being hungry but not wanting food. The light… burning me.

I was a Strigoi. A new born Strigoi. Horror welled up inside me, immediately replaced with disgust at myself. Then at Isaiah.

"What the hell have you done to me, you bastard!" I screamed at him. I felt like sobbing, but for some reason, tears weren't coming. Probably because I was now technically one of the undead.

"I have given you immortality. Don't complain. I could have easily killed you. Instead I have given you the chance many dream of." He replied. He cocked his head and added carelessly, "I know it's strange. You'll feel better once you've eaten. Its almost sundown now, I'm sure we'll scrounge up something for you."

I felt happy at that. I really wanted something to eat. No Rose! Don't feel like that. You'll be killing an innocent person! To escape, I tried to check on Lissa, I wondered how she was taking my disappearance. Probably badly.

I felt nothing. I frowned, and tried again. Still nothing. Then I realised there was no extra string of emotions coming from her. I felt… good. Those emotions had gotten me so worried, and I hadn't realised how much they'd been holding me down. And no more darkness! I was free!

More realizations happened over the next few hours as we waited for sundown. I was experimenting with my new body, I was truly badass now. I could karate chop through wooden doors as if they were like crumbly cheese. As the house didn't belong to Isaiah, he didn't care if I destroyed it.

I realised that I was free now. I hadn't liked the way I had found this freedom, but I was enjoying it. I could finally be myself. I realised how oppressed I had been my entire life, the _They Come First _mantra. What bullshit!

I come first now. Me. Not some stupid Moroi.

It was almost disorientating how quickly my values were changing. At first horror at myself, and now…

When the sun eventually came down, Isaiah took me into the greater Washington area. It was big, and full of clubs, where people go missing all the time, oh so easily…

We needed to go shopping first though. Blood stained clothing would automatically attract unwanted attention. I felt cool and impassive as we walked into a random clothes shop, and I eyed the attendant. It was a bored looking woman sitting on her phone. I suppressed the need to jump and drain her, there were way too many cameras, which eventually meant police. They were a nuisance, as Isaiah had told me on the way over.

He had also told me that Moroi tasted so much sweeter…

I hoped the contacts in my eyes were working. They were annoying but necessary. Before I completely destroyed the bathroom back at the house, Isaiah had thrown them at me, and I had caught them with uncanny reflexes. He had laughed coolly, and remarked, "We don't want those red eyes getting too much attention do we?"

Whatever. I found a pair of ripped jeans shorts, and a long-sleeved figure hugging blood red shirt. I walked into the changing room and stripped off my other clothes, leaving them there while I ripped off the tags and walked out in my new attire. Isaiah had asked the attendant over to a camera blindspot, and given her a quick nip on her wrist. Now she was too high off the endorphins to even notice me walking out with stolen goods. I grinned.

Now, for food. I glanced at Isaiah, he nodded.

We both headed in the direction of loud music. There was a back alley a few metres beside the line, and we both melted into the darkness. I inhaled, smelling out my prey. I was a huntress. Nothing could escape me.

I got a hint of something mouthwatering. I moved a few seconds before Isaiah, both in the same direction. There were two Moroi kissing each other, oblivious to the world, with two guardians keeping watch. They hadn't spotted us yet, but they would if we went any closer. I stopped Isaiah, and he looked at me questioningly. I pointed to the roof.

Silent as wraiths, we climbed up onto the roof, and started whispering closer to that mouthwatering scent…

The guardians were becoming uneasy. One said to the Moroi, "We should go back inside. I have a bad feeling about this place." He was smart.

The Moroi giggled and went back to their kissing. I eyed the man. He had black hair and pale skin, like all Moroi. The girl had long red hair to her waist.

Isaiah gave me the signal, and I nodded. Then I jumped from the roof, landing on the nearest guardian. He immediately went into battle mode, and attempted to shove me into the wall, but I had caught him by surprise. My strength eventually gave over, and I landed a blow to his head that made him go limp. Dead.

Isaiah had already dealt with the other one. Now we advanced on the two Moroi, now whimpering and terrified.

They looked at me, and their eyes widened with horror. Did they recognise me?

I didn't care.

I grabbed the boy, and gave him an unflinching smile, showing my fangs.

He started to scream, but before he could make too much noise, I was at his throat. His thrashing became weaker, and he actually gave a moan of pleasure at the endorphins from my venom. Soon, he too, went limp. I pushed him away from me, so he didn't get blood on my shorts. I walked over to the guardians, and regarded them. Their entire lives they had been defending their charges and being oppressed. Now they were dead.

That could have so easily been me. But it wasn't. I was free now.

Isaiah walked to me, and said simply,

"Now you are a true Strigoi."

And I no longer felt any horror at his words.

**Oh no! That was kind of fun to write, though.**

**Review!**

**x**


	4. Chapter 4

**DPOV**

"Dimitri, are you still with us?"

I saw the Princess looking at me, her large jade green eyes filled with concern. Well I suppose it wasn't like me to wander off mentally.

"Yes, Princess." I replied, short and curt. Emotions would get me killed when we eventually set off. I tried to understand the enormity of what was happening, what I was about to do.

Mikhail Tanner had been explaining that when he was hunting Sonya Karp (his former love turned Strigoi), he had had need to go to Russia, to follow a lead. His lead had been an ancient Moroi, a scholar from a library, who had tried to convince him that it was possible to restore a Strigoi. The Moroi had been researching this fable his entire life, and had finally discovered the secret in an old book.

Tanner had dismissed the Moroi as insane; he had started rambling on about the 'life force' that came from within a few selected Moroi that could be charmed into a silver stake. Of course, after Tanner had talked to the Princess, he figured out that the 'life force' the old one had been talking about was Spirit. Tanner had been given the book from the library by the Moroi, who insisted that he took it, as no-one believed him or shown the slightest interest except for Tanner, who at that point was getting pretty desparate.

I was in disbelief. I had never thought that we could save Rose, apart from killing her. To be as she once was…

And that's when I'd 'wandered.'

But how could I ask this of the Princess? She was the last Dragomir after all, she could absolutely not go hunting with us, especially after her former best friend turned Strigoi. There was no knowing what Rose would do if she got her hands on Lissa.

I was about to explain to the Princess that her coming on our [probably] doomed hunting party when she said quickly, 'Adrian has already agreed to help.'

Ivashkov? He barely knew Rose, why would he help her? I looked at the Princess questioningly, and she explained to us, 'Adrian has only just met me, but we both know that we're wielders of spirit. We're important to each other. And he knows that Rose is important to me,' her voice broke and her eyes teared up, but she looked at us, determined, 'and he wants to help restore her any way he can.'

It made sense. I glanced at Tanner, and he gave a shrug.

I turned to the Princess and said, 'Princess, I know how much Rose means to you. But you realise that there is no way we can let you come on this trip?' Her eyes widened in protest, but I continued, 'they would never let you go, Vasilisa.' Her eyes grew even wider when she comprehended that I'd called her Vasilisa. I surged on, 'do you understand? The authorities would hunt us down. They would think we kidnapped you! You are underage, and the last Dragomir. Adrian, if he agrees, will come with us instead, he is at least overage. ('And willing to fund the trip,' I said to myself silently.) We will communicate through his dreaming with you, so you will always know whats going on. And of course, we will need both of your help to help charm this stake with Spirit.'

She looked at me, and her tears spilled over as she realised I was right, she couldn't come with us. She gathered herself, looked at both of us and answered fiercely, 'then lets get Adrian, charm this stake, and save Rose.'

I looked at her with admiration, tinged with wonder. God knows how she feels right now, but she is determined to get Rose back. And so am I.

'Hold on Rose,' I begged silently. 'I'm coming. And this time, I won't be late.'

**RPOV**

It had been a week now. It feels like I've been reborn into a new life, and I have only just started living it. I could never have imagined the freedom back as a Dhampir! Its incredible. I get to eat (haha) what I want, do what I want. For me. Not for a Moroi.

There is only one puzzle piece that is missing from my life now… Dimitri.

While he was still a dhampir… We could never be together. I wanted to share this freedom with him. Again, something we never could have achieved as Dhampirs. We were both too caught up with guarding Moroi, and as I see now, they were just taking our lives. Using us for protection. If we were both Strigoi, we could be together… Forever. We could build our own empire and pick off Moroi at our leisure. Ah, the life.

I daydreamed about the ways I could lure Dimitri out and turn him, as I packed up our things from the house. We were moving on now. We had a few human and Moroi bodies in the basement, and we needed to leave before we attracted unwanted attention. Of course, Isaiah wasn't helping. He considered it beneath him. Part of him teaching me about the ways of the undead (which were mega-cool) there was also the fact that I was basically his whipping girl.

"Hathaway. Whats taking so long?" Isaiah asked coldly from above.

My thoughts turned to another violent direction, this time about finishing off Isaiah. At the beginning, I had needed him to teach me how to act in this new life. I didn't need him anymore. Besides, he had turned me against my will. This was my final revenge. His time would come soon enough.

And then where would I go? What would I do? Hunt Dimitri? Hunt Lissa?

Surely they would still be together. He was her guardian after all, my mouth twisting at the word guardian. The question is: how the hell do I break into the Academy? Surely that is where Lissa will still be. Its one of the few places that has virtual guaranteed protection from Strigoi, there are so many wards… The other place was at Court of course, but she was in her senior year… Surely they would want her to finish school…

Another possibility was that Dimitri had escaped from their clutches, and he was now purely hunting me. I can imagine it. It would make him a lot easier to catch…

"Hathaway! Hurry up, before the New Year if possible." Isaiah drawled from the first floor.

And that's when I had the idea of a lifetime.

**Sorry its a bit short. The next one i'll do will be super long. **

**Tell me what you think, if you can be bothered. I expect some silence after not writing anything for a year :P**

**xxx**


	5. Chapter 5

**RPOV**

Well, okay, idea of a lifetime might be a little strong. It was just a 'lightbulb' moment. We were in some stolen car when I'd had it, and Isaiah was driving. Which pissed me off because he was a crap driver. A downside about being centuries old is that modern technology wasn't too easy to grasp, lets just say that… Isaiah had grasping difficulties. As in the last vehicle he drove was probably horse and carriage. If only I could get rid of him.

I knew that I would be insane to take out an insanely old Strigoi by myself. He needed a really good distraction to give me the opportunity to pounce, or I'd probably end up dead. Which wouldn't be cool.

Isaiah was going to take me to meet all of his gang associates or whatever, and he said that I'd need to 'prove my worth' to get anywhere high ranking. Strigoi liked chasing (and eating) Moroi, especially royal Moroi. It was a way to pass the time. And that's when I'd had the 'lightbulb' moment.

I was going to kidnap Lissa. Yep, easy as that. Break the wards, storm the school, kidnap the last living Dragomir princess, and claw my way up the ranks of Mafiadom.

How does this end with a dead Isaiah, you might ask? Well, Lissa's guardian happens to be a badass. And there is no way he is going to just let her get eaten. He'd hunt us down 'till the ends of the earth. Which is what I wanted, of course. Why not rule the Strigoi mafia with Dimitri? I'd bet he'd be even more gorgeous and ferocious undead, and he'd be a serious asset with his ferocious fighting skills.

We swerved a corner really fast, which made me lose track of my thoughts somewhat. I swore, and glared at Isaiah with all the rage I could muster. He gave me a cold, haughty look, and braked really quickly, turning the car like a pro and stopping before a mansion in the middle of nowhere. Huh, he could drive better than I thought, that or beginners luck. Still, I couldn't imagine a horse carriage doing that.

He was about to get out, when I grabbed his arm. He spun around and stared at me, eyes blazing. I smiled frostily and said, 'I want to tell you something. Important.'

He cocked an eyebrow and laughed coldly, 'We have an hour car ride, and now you want to tell me something, little Blood Whore?'

I gritted my teeth, but pushed my anger down, knowing that I'd have to make him agree with me before I told the others about my plan. That and he would end up dead at the end of it, and that was revenge enough for little old me.

I told him what I intended to do. He stared outside, his expression blank. Then he told me, 'I think you've outdone yourself, Hathaway.'

I smiled. At the fact that he liked my plan which would end in his demise, of course, but also because he called me Hathaway instead of the usual garbage.

We got out of the car, and started towards the ridiculously large mansion.

***Several hours later***

Words cannot explain all of my emotions right now.

Whoever told us at school that Strigoi only have basic needs; hunger, survival of the fittest, (and the need to torture much of the earths population), was preaching bullshit. Maybe its just because I've only been awakened for a few weeks now, but my emotions are literally zinging around my nervous system. A-a-adrenaline.

I should explain. Right now, I'm in a super-sleek, super-fast jet that is taking the lovely Isaiah (sarcasm) and I towards St Vlad's Academy.

I'm going in on an undercover mission to get Lissa. Singlehandedly. If this doesn't prove my worth to the Strigoi mafia bosses, I don't know what will- maybe taking out Queen Tatiana at Court… One foolhardy plan at a time, Rose.

To be fair, I had planned to at least take an elite team of maybe five or six extremely old and powerful Strigoi with me for my back, but they'd wanted me to do it alone. Prejudice against ex-dhampirs in general, we had tried to kill them before being awakened. They'd given me Isaiah, who would be waiting in a getaway vehicle that I'd most likely need, on the outskirts of the academy forests.

And my brilliant reasoning for going to the Academy, one of the most well-guarded, anti-Strigoi places apart from the Royal Court? Impatience. That saying, 'patience is a virtue' doesn't apply to Strigoi, because we don't have virtue. Whoever would have thought that having no morals could be so much fun.

Basically, I don't have the patience to wait for sweet Dimitri to come hunting for me. It could take years for him to find me. Dimitri's already 7 years my senior, why wait more? Besides, I wanted revenge at Lissa and the Moroi community. Those bastards would have leeched my life for all its worth, until I finally would have gotten killed before thirty from some random Strigoi attack.

I wouldn't kill Lissa immediately. Give or take a few weeks. She was going to be my prize, my hostage. It would make _him_ come to _me_. Especially when I tell him where we are. I was keen on draining her, instead of the other way round.

So… rundown of the plan:

x1 crazy mission to St Vlad's

kidnap x1 Dragomir princess,

steal a kiss (mayhaps) from x1 sexy Russian

and kill x? guardians on the way.

Sounds like _my _kind of plan.

**DPOV**

The others had convinced me to return to St Vladimir's to pack the essentials for the trip (like the royal Dragomir credit card which the Princess had insisted on giving us, even though Ivashkov was more than able to fund our expedition), and to try and obtain the permission for our 'business travel' to Alberta. I was going to try not to ruin our reputations further, by saying that we had important business in Russia to attend to, and that we would be gone for a few weeks, give or take. I had a feeling that Alberta would see right through me, but I had to try – for Mikhail's sake, at least. If it didn't work, we would still leave, but I wanted to do things by the book.

I also wanted to see the Princess returned to St Vladimirs, a secure place where Rose couldn't reach her. I had a nagging feeling that she would target her former best friend.

We arrived at the beginning of the Moroi day, around 6pm, to find security very lax, with very few guardians around. It dawned on me that they were still returning from holidays – Christmas is one of the few times that Guardians have formal 'holiday time' although most choose them to spend with their assignments. That, and the Strigoi threat was presumed over, after the tragedy of Spokane. My throat tightened, and I kept it behind my guardian mask, which I hadn't removed since Rose was taken.

I was stupid to think that Tasha could ever compare to her… The dark hair and eyes, with pale almond skin accompanied by her feisty nature. Not many saw it, but it was covering a deeply caring, passionate, beautiful soul… That was gone. She was gone. I would try and get her back, but this spirit magic was unheard of, and I had to prepare myself for what I saw as the inevitable.

I wondered if I could follow my own lesson to Rose; that the Strigoi are not the people we once knew. The time would come when I would have no choice but to free her. I would stake my own heart at the same time. And as she died, I hope that I would once again see her beautiful soul, before it was extinguished forever.

I shuddered as we crept along down the windy, darkening path to the relative safety of St Vladimirs. It just wasn't the same knowing I would never see her inside it again.

**Or will he?**

**Sorry, I was planning to do until the end of the attack, but I'm bloody tired. I'll update over the weekend again, to make up for lost time. After Tuesday, my last exam is over and I'll have more time to write – this time I promise I won't dissapear for another year.**

**Reviews are appreciated my loves, and remember to always nice to each other.**

**I really need to sleep when I start spreading words of love. Goodnight x**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey everyone... So you know how i said i'd update over the weekend?**

**Sorry! I got a bajillion essays from teachers who thought that exams weren't enough stress. **

**Thank you for the lovely reviews, they actually inspire me to write :)**

**On with the story!**

**I realised i haven't done a disclaimer, for a while/if ever. So i don't own any of this (apart from my storyline)**

**RPOV**

Ok, its show time.

We were arriving at the academy outskirts soon but we were late because we had to abduct a human to break the wards for us. He was sniveling in the backseat, looking at us with scared eyes. I enjoyed it. He should feel scared by us.

I was going to have him as a final snack before I went in (after he'd broken the wards, of course). I would need all the strength I could get.

Isaiah, who was still driving like my grandfather, pulled over at the outskirts of the road, near some caves on the outskirts of the academy. We had arrived at the beginning of the vampire evening, so that hopefully Lissa would be in her dorm room and everyone else asleep – hopefully it would be several hours before people noticed she was missing and by that time we would be long gone.

Of course, that only gave me about 3 hours to get in and out before the sun came up and I became toast. Literally. Strigoi don't tan well.

It was time I got going.

"See you in a few. Be ready." I said to Isaiah. He looked at me and nodded. Despite the fact he was still pissed at me for killing Elena, he was grudgingly impressed by what I was about to do. He might even respect me a little if I got out of here alive. It was a shame he wouldn't live long enough for us to work on our feelings towards each other.

I dragged the shaking human out of the car, and compelled him to run as fast as he could to keep up with me. We'd make it to the academy in about half an hour, if his heart didn't conk out or he somehow ran himself with the stake we'd given him. I stayed away from the charmed silver and its burning influence as much as I could, considering there was a strong possibility I'd get plenty more where that came from before the night was through.

We started running through the scrub, and thankfully he seemed to be mildly fit, so we made good time. I could see the academy over the last hill, which is when we encountered the first ward. I raised my eyebrows at him, and he staked the outer ring. The shimmering edge of the ward collided with the stake, and the hole the stake made grew wider and wider until it spread and broke completely. The stake magic had won.

I smiled cruelly as we continued on towards the school.

**DPOV**

The dawn was providing a small amount of pink light to fall across the grounds. I paused to look at the view before I continued my shift.

I was patrolling the inner grounds, but I had to cover twice as much ground as I usually would because the guardians were still returning from holidays. It made me worry, and I resolved to take it up with Alberta before we left. I packed everything before my shift, and we were heading out the next morning. Adrian was packed, hopefully. I sighed and looked forward to the end of my last uneventful shift.

**RPOV**

We'd disabled the last ward, and still hadn't encountered any guardians. I was gleeful inside because it made my job so much easier. I had no further need of the human. I turned to him and bared me fangs. He was sweating, and I could see his arteries pulsing in his neck. He was asking for it.

He gaped at me, and started to run in the opposite direction. I rolled my eyes, and caught up to him in seconds. I faced him, and he started crying about how he was too young to die, his parents would miss him, blah blah, I didn't care. I bit gently into his neck, he had done me a service after all, and I didn't want him screaming and drawing attention to us. He didn't taste as good as a Moroi, but it was sustenance. His panicked screeches soon turned into moans of pleasure because of the Strigoi endorphins, and he would have collapsed if I hadn't held him up. He soon became limp, and I threw him underneath a shrub. That's all humans are good for, service and nourishment. I wiped my mouth with my hand, and continued towards the academy. I'd made sure to eat the human far away enough so that no foreign ears would listen, but as I got closer in caution was more necessary.

I proceeded with as much care and caution as I could, but I was also acutely aware that the sun would be up in less than two hours, and I knew that dragging Lissa to the car would take time. So I almost missed the first guardian, which was stupid of me.

He jumped me, and tackled me to the ground. I was lying on my back snarling with rage, when he did a double take and said, "Rose Hathaway?"

He was probably one of my old teachers. I didn't recognise him in any case, but I took the opportunity to give him my man-eater smile. I also knocked the stake out of his hand, and punched him in the stomach. He flew back into a tree and landed on his stomach fairly winded. Still, I knew that dhampirs had a fairly good recovery rate and he now knew I meant business. I zipped to the tree at a speed he probably couldn't see and I broke his neck. Quick as you like. I had to hide him… Thank God forests provide ample hiding spots for dead dhampirs.

After he was disposed of, I checked to see if he had any little friends. None. Wow, they really needed to ramp up security in this place. Still, I needed to hurry. They would notice he was gone really soon, and if they put the place in lockdown, I'd never get to Lissa. And I'd probably be dead.

Like a prowling cat, I continued towards the school, keeping a close eye out for any more guardians. The next one would _not _jump me.

I proceeded like this for about ten minutes before I got to a meeting point for guardians switching shifts. One of the good things about being an ex-student was that I knew inside information about the school. If I could get the guardian who was supposed to be changing shifts with the one I'd just killed, they wouldn't notice they were missing for another four hours, which would be good for me.

Ah, there she is. The replacement guardian. I'd just kill her quickly, and I'm pretty sure that this was the last patrol before the school. I was so close. I hadn't realised this would be so much fun, killing the people I once knew. I should do it more often.

She was checking the distance, and her watch; the guardian she was replacing was late. She should have been checking behind her. I made another mistake though; I thought she'd be easier than the other one… I kicked her on the knee joint to get her to the ground, but she somehow managed to swipe her stake up at my face. I got a nasty cut on my cheek that made my legs watery, and I hissed in pain. She was standing now, and any surprise at seeing me was gone. All she saw was a Strigoi, a threat. She wouldn't hesitate.

We circled each other, and I heard her scream for help. I couldn't have that; one was enough, thank you. I took her down when she screamed, she momentarily lost eye contact with me. Big mistake. I broke her neck, it seemed neat, she could go the same way as her friend. After hiding her, and making sure that no-one had heard her scream, I continued on to the building. I tried to remember which building Lissa was living in, and then I got it; the closest to the church. I scaled up the wall, and got into the corridor through an open window. This was too easy. I just had to blend in now, look like a tired student, on my way to bed…

I passed a couple of tired looking Moroi who didn't recognise me, and they smelled so good… But I didn't eat them. That shows dedication.

Ah shit. There is one person I do recognise… Christian Ozera. He was coming down the opposite corridor. He must be on his way to visit Lissa as well. There was no-one else in the vicinity, I suppose I could eat him... Control Rose. I took a deep breath and looked him in the eye. He looked as if he was about to make a snarky comment, and then he really looked at me. His smile slid off his face, and he went several shades whiter, then he whispered, "Rose?"

"Sparky." I replied icily, but with sass. I try and keep things interesting.

He looked as if he was frozen. I ran to Lissa's door, and it took a while for him to refocus on where I was. I could hear Lissa moving about her apartment, so I knew she was there. I looked back at him, tilted my head to one side, and asked sweetly

"Get Dimitri. If you tell anyone else, she's dead." I watched him nod slowly and then run, probably to my favourite Russian. I yanked Lissa's door open and walked inside.

**DPOV**

I'd just finished my shift and was heading to check on Adrian to make sure he wasn't drunk, and then afterwards to Lissa to say goodbye. On my way to Adrian's however, Christian Ozera practically ran into me. He was very out of breath, so it took him a while to say the words that made my blood run cold,

"R, Rose… in Lissa's room… Go, now… You can't tell anyone… I have to come with you!" He looked at me pleadingly, and without wasting any more time, I grabbed him and started walking to Lissa's room. I didn't stop to listen to the voice that said I shouldn't be taking a Royal Moroi straight to a Strigoi, only to the voice that told me I was going to stop Rose… The Strigoi… At whatever cost, to save Lissa.

I took the final steps and braced myself. I let go of Christian at this point and told him to stay behind me. I closed my eyes and prayed to myself in Russian, and then I opened the door. Lissa was on her bed, hurriedly tearing her sheet into strips and then knotting them. Her eyes were glazed over. Strigoi compulsion. It was very strong, much stronger than a Moroi's. I wondered what the hell she was doing, and then I realised she was making a rope. To get out of her window…

And then I saw Rose. It felt so good to see her again, but so terrifying.

She looked the same… but so different. The smile, her familiar shape, her hair were so heartachingly similar to the girl I'd loved. But her skin was now chalk white, and her eyes… her loving brown had turned to ruby, hateful, red. I put on my guardian mask with difficulty, and stood my ground. She hadn't attacked when she immediately saw me, rather stood in the corner and watched with a cold, calculating expression.

"Hello comrade. How goes it?" she said. The voice that sounded so much like Rose, but at the same time something completely alien.

"What are you doing here Rose?" I asked her warily. This could easily have been another situation. Like catching Rose (the real Rose) in Lissa's room after hours.

She whipped her hair back with lightening speed, and a deliberating look came across her icy features.

"I'm wondering who to kill first. Sparkles, or you. Because that's what will happen if you stop me taking that," she said, pointing her thumb to Lissa. Rose then snapped her fingers and Lissa stopped what she was doing, out of the compulsion. She looked up at us, scared out of her wits.

"Okay sweetie, the rope is long enough," said Rose with disdain, "throw it out of the window and wait."

Lissa, who now seemed to be aware of her actions, moved steadily towards the window, and threw the rope out whilst crying silently.

I had stayed where I was the entire time, truly unwilling to attack Rose first, but she left me no choice. They come first, and I couldn't allow Lissa to be taken.

So I attacked Rose. She was expecting it, and snapped her hand across my face, sending me wheeling back. She then kicked me in the stomach before I could muster a defense and sent me flying back across the room into the wall. If she'd kicked me in the chest I probably would be suffering a few broken ribs by now. I swore internally, and tried to stand up. Rose was grinning at me.

And then Christian sent a fireball at her face. Her grin turned into a snarl as she dodged, and that's when I moved. I tackled her to the ground, and kept her there. She was so strong. I grabbed my stake from where I'd dropped it earlier and brought it high above my head.

Then I heard Lissa scream, 'NOO!' I flinched, and Rose used my distraction and batted the stake out of my hand, and heaved with her back, I hit the ceiling and was on the floor again. I saw stars. Rose had dealt with Christian by this time, and he was lying in a heap over Lissa's bed. She then put me into a chokehold. I was kicking and struggling to breath, when I realised I'd failed and this was it, the end.

Then I heard her whisper in my ear, 'Spokane, Dimitri, Spokane. Don't forget.'

A tear slid down my cheek as I faded into the blackness.

**RPOV**

Dimitri was finally unconscious, so I let him so gently down. Then I sprung back and looked at him warily, just in case he was faking. He wasn't. Goody.

I turned back to Lissa and said 'Climb, before I eat your boyfriend. He hear fire users taste hot.' She whimpered and started climbing down the rope. I really hope she tied those knots properly; otherwise she would be very flat in a few seconds.

We made it to the ground, and the alarm still hadn't rung. It had been 30 minutes since I'd attacked the first guardian… Which means we needed to get out of here before they realised something was wrong. I took Lissa's hand, and dragged her into the scrub, back to Isaiah. He was in for a surprise.

**Whaddya think? I hope you liked it!**

**I kind of wrote it in a rush, its the longest chapter yet.**

**To make up for the others i didn't write... **

**I'll get more consistent, don't worry!**

**Review please, they make my day :)**


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